Digitech FreqOut Reviews

Good stuff

The SUB setting is quite warm but odd to control based on your notes and pickups picking em up

Fantastic

Not much to say, does exactly what it is supposed to. Nice build quality and knobs can fine-tune the pedal exactly where you want to.

Good, but could be better

Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love this pedal, I just isn't so much of a natural feedback creator, than it is a theremin-like device. You can get some very nice sounds out of it though.

It can definitely be useful and you get a nice, rich sound and it's great for some occasions. The thing that really bothers me the most is the fact that the feedback cuts out at around 8-10 seconds. I mean, 10 seconds is enough in most cases, but if you want just a bit more, it can get pretty annoying.

It also isn't the most energy saving- it needs 275 mA.

The construction of the pedal is very good and won't break easily even when abused.

Well, here's the final verdict:

If you want a natural feedback creator and more rich songs, you're gonna get that-just don't expect to much as it isn't the very best. It's a ton of fun to experiment with it and it also has a very rigged construction.

And hey - if you don't like it, you can always return it...so go for it !

Really fun way to create "feedback"

This is a great pedal to create almost infinite sustain with feedback like overtones.

Real instant fun without bothering the neighbors.

GO BUY THIS PEDAL NOW!

This is the pedal we guitar players have been waiting for. It creates those magic feedback and everlasting sustain moments at the touch of a button. I am in love with the "2nd" setting, and this baby instantly earned the place on my pedalboard. Use it before your drive and add some delay for maximum joy.

It also looks really cool; you need this in your life! :)

Nice natural sounding feedback

I always play at low volume so creating feedback was a bit of a challenge. With this pedal that is no longer the case. I usually have it set on Natural High and it does create very credible feedback. The pedal looks nice and controls are pretty self explanatory. I was a bit disappointed with the way that it does cut off feedback abruptly after a little while and contrary to many reviews I've read this pedal does not deliver infinite sustain like a sustainiac does.

Freakin Amazing!

This is one of the most innovative pedals I have owned! Gives you excellent feedback effects and also very useful for texturing or adding ambience to your sound.

Just leaving my feedback here ;)

The FreqOut pedal is very cool. It does just what it says it'll do. It will not hold the feedback indefinitely for a single note (it corresponds to the sustain of your guitar), but it holds the feedback for a pretty good while, and it sounds real. It adds a nice spice to your sound.

Perfect when you are on modeler + IEM

I use it with my Helix Rack and we are on IEMs with the band and it adds a very nice touch to the solos when set up correctly. However you should take care to test it live before fully integrating to your rig as it can behave a bit different if you have extra wedges on stage and the FOH PA of course.

The build quality is very good, nice and sturdy.

pros:

makes your solos sound better by adding feedback you may miss from the tube amp times

cons:

takes time to get used to how this pedal will behave in a live situation

Very specific functionality...

It's safe to say, the FreqOut is not for everybody!!

I like playing with synthy/drone type sounds from my guitar and the FreqOut is a great addition to that type of set-up, providing feedback swells on slower settings or immediate feedback type sounds by themselves without the input sound (and various points in between!) - highly recommended!!

Easy option to have infinite sustain.

I have sustainiac, sustainer and ebow and everything have plus and minus.

FreqOut is definitely easist way, no need to build inside guitar or train special hand movements. Somebody complain that is not work properly (dying tones) but remember that you must have it just after guitar. Then works good.

One of a kind, good at what it does

Beautiful and sturdy looking, easy to use yet offering a lot of control.

AFAIK no other pedal does this pedal's trick.

As to the sound, I like it, but my experience with feedback is rather limited. Back when I played loud amps I never managed to get any pleasing feedback out of my rig, but this pedal does offer a whole range of useful feedback tones. So I really cannot tell how other, more experienced people will feel about the quality of the emulation.

It goes without saying that pedal sequence is important here (I prefer my frEQout up front, again YMMV).

Fun pedal with limitations - useful tip included! :)

I totally agree with the other reviews - it is not a perfect replacement for an E-bow or Sustainer pickup (I have both) but if you accept it that it won't be the same it is not bad!

The abrupt cut-off is annoying me, as well, a fade-out (maybe with an option to control it from zero to whatever you like) could be better but I don't know if it is feasible.

One thing I found: you can extend the length of the notes if you gently pick very close to the bridge! It won't restart the sustain, only extend it. It usually works, I had good experience with it live.

The "theremin sound", also mentioned earlier, can be really fun - use it with large ambient delays and stuff, magic!

It also looks amazing on the board!

Know what you're buying and you'll be happy

I like this pedal a lot, but only because I knew what I was getting. I can understand the people who didn't like it, thinking it was something else. Maybe Digitech shouldn't have even called it a 'natural feedback creator' on the box; perhaps 'haunting, ambient theremin simulator' would have been a better description.

It's far from perfect though. Here's some slight negatives:

It is definitely not a replacement for ebow or sustainic to any useful extent, because the generated signal abruptly cuts off after 6 - 10 seconds. It doesn't even sound like those devices. Do NOT buy the Freqout thinking you're getting a cheap ebow alternative.

The short cut-off actually does annoy me, even though I was prepared for it. It must have been a hardware limitation rather than a design decision. Eight seconds is fine 90% of the time, but maddening when you really do need the signal to continue for a little longer. They could have at least made it fade out slowly. This is the pedal's largest failure, I think.

Another thing that bothers me is that the gain/onset needs to be set quite accurately. I was hoping I could just set and forget it at one favourite setting, but it needs tweaking quite a lot depending on what you're playing and what other effects are enabled. On stage, I'm not sure how I would go about changing the settings without having to test it in front of the audience before starting the song.

It also generates a slight buzz from the power supply in my daisy-chained set-up, so consider using an isolated power source. It requires 240mA.

The Freqout has to be at the front of my effects chain. Anywhere else in the chain sounds like a tacky synth.

Lastly, I wish I could toggle between momentary and latch mode with a double-click on the foot switch; I dislike bending down to use the toggle switches.

The Freqout is basically a two trick horse. 1) adding a traditional feedback sound to sustained chords and notes, and 2) a sort of atmospheric theremin sound.

Don't expect anything more than that. You might be able to coax a little more out of it by combining it with other effects, but those are the only two sounds you should expect out of the box.

On the plus side, it adds feedback to ringing chords (and tracks bends and tremolo) much better than I anticipated. The straightforward traditional feedback sounds good enough to fool an audience.

I'm using the theremin sound quite judiciously (no-one would really notice it's there unless I suddenly turned it off), and it sounds really nice, adding a subtle layer of delicate texture, bubbling and tweeting underneath the playing, especially in conjunction with a delay. At times it is very atmospheric and beautiful.

It's pretty useless for rock/pop covers, but will lend itself very well to some of my own material, especially pieces composed with this effect in mind. This unique pedal could make certain songs shine if used with care.

Edit 1: Since Digitech got closed down by Harmann, if you see one of these going cheap second-hand, I'd be inclined to nab it.

Better than expeted

I use couple of Digitech effects ... this is their best in my studio

Best effect I've bought yet!

Unbelievable. As soon as I first discovered this pedal I knew I had to have it. Pete Thorn once said this pedal was made for soloing and he was right, it's a joy to use while tearing out a solo, be it chaotic or melodic, or both simultaneously.

If you're looking for an E-Bow type effect, where you can achieve infinite sustain while retaining a fantastic tone, look no further than this. Placed before distortion, it will provide a very ethereal tone, almost like a theremin; placed after distortion, it's as if you're stood in front of a Marshall stack with the gain on full, wailing banshee trapped inside your cab. It is mind blowing. Your solos will never be the same after using this.

Being able to select different harmonics is a brilliant feature. Personally so far, I'm not quite a fan of the Sub harmonic but it's good to know its there if I need it. Being able to toggle between latching and momentary mode on the fly is very convenient, but the real winner for me is the dry kill switch, leaving nothing but said ethereal wet tone. It's perfect for creating ambient pieces or textures.

I can't find an overall fault, but one little thing bugs me. I'm not sure if it's me, my amp or my setup but I found it doesn't work through an FX loop and has to be placed in front of the amp instead. Other than that, I cannot fault it at all.

Kudos Digitech, first the Whammy DT, now the FreqOut. Keep churning out the crazy element in these pedals, we need more!

The best to, close to the real thing! With a touch of ' more ' in it!

Yes, it does it!

Controlled, selected and as you wish it feedback!

Is it the real thing? Not exactly! But truly, with some bit of tweaking you'll be amazed by this pedal!

Because, it is a one of a kind special effect that has its place among the wild and unusual worth talking about. And mainly playing with!

I'd say, I knew what I was going for, even before buying it and trying it!

And it is up to my expectation and already, after a short time use, a notch above.

So, are we talking feed-backing as the ones you can achieve 'naturally'? No, but choosing frequencies is an awesome addition to it and being able to include this with the other effects seems to be alike you get a new set of similar pedals , each of them giving in conjunction a special feel that they wouln't, even if played on together without the FreqOut.

The pedal is build to last. The knobs are not in metal, so, it is not indestructible. But I never destroyed a pedal, so I'd say: 'don't worry about this!'

The size of the pedal is quite compact and I expected it bigger. So, for big footed people, to find that switch and stomp on it without touching the control knobs may be a bit tricky But as with everything, practice makes perfect. And since the knobs are small, you have a lot of changes happening by moving them ever slightly. Small knobs may be a bit difficult for bigger fingers but definitely not as bad as some mini effects with those micro controls.

I am also delighted to be able to use the effect in 100% wet , you can play with it in a way that reminds me of playing with an e-bow.

Quite nice indeed, as the there is no need for that cumbersome item that I have not enjoyed using in the past. Especially that you can pick strings, not like an e-bow, which is difficult to use at playing many strings with.

It would be a very fine touch to add to your extra guitar tracks in recordings.

To be able to see the development of the feed-back with the LED feedback indicator is truly a much appreciated addition that will help and support the way you select the range (gain, onset) which, when playing, gives you a visual lead clue on the way it responds. As if, a visual metronome.

Without it, I'd say, it would have been a great miss.

Overall!

Will you feel good with this addition to your gear?

YES! I recommend it! And wish you a lot of fun, for an affordable very special pedal.

I have used it with some other instruments and could imagine adding it to my synths too.

Little detail! No battery use possible with it! But, it is nowadays more common with new tech.

Cheers!

Controllable feedback generator

Great pedal for creating controllable feedback sounds - no longer do you need to stand by your amp shaking your guitar!

Great for a new pedal of this kind

I always wanted a sustainiac system on my guitar, but I'm kinda worried about drilling additional holes before I have a spare one.

I know that this kind of technology for pedals is still under development and improvements are yet to come, but I decided to go for this one since the price is OK.

The sound is very good for an artificial sustain, all types of sustain sound great on this one. The pedal offers many possibilities, thumbs up for Digitech for all the controls that this pedal has. The led indicators are also very helpful and well designed.

The only cons is the lenght of the sustain (again, a legit issue since it is not a real sustain pickup). If you use it in solos it works very well, but if you're more into very long sustain parts, something similar like bands Type O Negative and Anathema use for example, don't expect an infinite sustain. I just did a test and the sustain usually drops after 7 sec (and it drops suddenly, it doesn't fade). Sometimes I managed to hold it for 11 sec and that was the maximum.

Like I said before, I expect that this will probably be improved in the future versions.

Freqing freqed freakout!!!

Before it was just neighbors getting freqed out, but now thankfully it's just me. The feedback is worthy of the 5* feedback I am giving it.

There is this clever little knob that dictates the feedback range. It actually is a knob (Onset) within a knob (Gain). I have never seen a knob quite like it. They both rotate independently. There is a control below it (labeled Type) to select the type of feedback you desire for more harmonic stuff. This has got to be some niche variable pot if I have ever seen one.

Technical advice time...

Pedal placement is very important, place it first.

F I R S T ! ! !

Pickups make a difference too. I get more feedback from my P90 than my single coil.

It's True Bypass, I know this because I have tested it with other pedals that rely on an unaltered signal path from the pickups.